When you first meet Steve and Kahley DeVries, it is almost impossible to not fall in love with their family. Their picture perfect home sits atop a small hill, surrounded by farmers’ fields. In the faint distance, you can hear their three energetic kids playing outside as their family dog roams freely around their property.
Steve has been farming his entire life. Originally from Goderich, Ontario, his parents moved their dairy farm to Listowel, eventually transitioning into chicken farming and selling their dairy quota. Steve grew up not intending to take over the family farm until much later in his life, however, when his father passed away in 2010 his life plans were accelerated. Kahley and Steve have reinvigorated this family farm through hard work and dedication, and are proud to call it home.
To learn more about Steve & Kahley DeVries, visit: https://www.chickenfarmers.ca/farmers/stevedevries/
When you first meet Steve and Kahley DeVries, it is almost impossible to not fall in love with their family. Their picture perfect home sits atop a small hill, surrounded by farmers’ fields. In the faint distance, you can hear their three energetic kids playing outside as their family dog roams freely around their property.
Meggie and Adam always knew that they would end up on the family farm. “I think that was never a question, at least for me,” says Meggie. Her passion for agriculture began an early age, as she grew up helping her family on the farm. As for Adam, he never envisioned another career path. “I grew up watching my grandfather farm these lands, and my dad farm these lands. Now it’s my turn and I know it’s where I want to be.”
Before school, after school, on weekends, for years Meggie, Adam and their family worked tirelessly on their cash crop and dairy operation. They eventually sold their dairy quota to focus solely on crops, however, things changed when Isabelle decided she wanted to try her hand at chicken farming and Meggie took a liking to it instantly.
To learn more about Meggie Villeneuve, visit:
https://www.chickenfarmers.ca/farmers/meggie-villeneuve/
When you first meet Steve and Kahley DeVries, it is almost impossible to not fall in love with their family. Their picture perfect home sits atop a small hill, surrounded by farmers’ fields. In the faint distance, you can hear their three energetic kids playing outside as their family dog roams freely around their property.
Tim and Angela relish that their children, Caelin, Russell and Tobi, are able to grow up on the farm and excel at the activities they are passionate about. The farm is a priority to the family, and they understand that the welfare of their birds is extremely important to the community. “We hear that from people we meet in the community. I know that they care about the welfare of the birds. I also know that they don’t know how much we put into it,” says Angela. “Tim is meticulous with his details! He makes spreadsheets, and he cares so much about doing a good job. I would be happy with anything that Tim produced”. One of Tim’s favourite things about chicken farming is getting to constantly learn about the emerging trends and researching best practices. “I feel satisfied when I have been able to grow a bird in the best conditions possible and I enjoy pushing the boundaries to make those conditions even better”, says Tim. “If you take care of the details, the details will take care of you.”
To learn more about Tim Ansems and Angela Johnston, visit:
https://www.chickenfarmers.ca/farmers/tim-ansems-and-angela-johnston/
When you first meet Steve and Kahley DeVries, it is almost impossible to not fall in love with their family. Their picture perfect home sits atop a small hill, surrounded by farmers’ fields. In the faint distance, you can hear their three energetic kids playing outside as their family dog roams freely around their property.
Farming has always been in Barry’s life ever since he was young. Born in Truro, Nova Scotia, his family moved to Prince Edward Island a few years later. His family has been farming chicken for over 30 years. About 10 years ago, he bought out the family farm, while also running a 50 cow dairy operation with his son Mark.
The family farm in Brackley now has two 42,000 square-foot chicken barns (two storeys each). “Milking is the more intense operation, we milk them twice a day, with no robots,” he said. “But chicken farming has changed my life.”
“I typically on the ‘gator, and go to the chicken barn, check the water line, and I check the feed lines, make sure everything is going alright,” explains Mark.
“Chicken farming is not as labour intensive as other commodities,” Barry adds. “But it includes many benefits, such as being able to watch and interact with the birds, comparing the differences between the breeds and their performance, the challenges of dealing with the different growing conditions, and then of getting the best flock to market in the best health that you can. An added bonus? I get the by-product of fertilizer for my other crops.” These include corn, mostly, with grasses that are all used on-farm, primarily as feed for the cows.
To learn more about Barry and Mark Uyterlinde, visit:
https://www.chickenfarmers.ca/farmers/barry-and-mark-uyterlinde/
When you first meet Steve and Kahley DeVries, it is almost impossible to not fall in love with their family. Their picture perfect home sits atop a small hill, surrounded by farmers’ fields. In the faint distance, you can hear their three energetic kids playing outside as their family dog roams freely around their property.
There are 2 types of dietary protein: complete protein and incomplete protein.
Complete protein: This type of dietary protein contains all the essential amino acids we need to build protein in the body. Complete protein is found in all animal sources of protein, like chicken! Chicken is a great option because it is an excellent source of protein and has less saturated and trans fats than many other animal sources of protein.
Incomplete protein: This type of dietary protein does not contain all of the essential amino acids that the body needs. If you ate only incomplete protein, the functions in the body supported by protein would be compromised. The majority of plant foods (beans, nuts, grains) are considered incomplete proteins.
This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t eat plant-based sources of protein. You just have to find complementary proteins to eat together. For example, some grain products contain amino acids that legumes and beans don’t. When eaten together, there’s enough of that specific amino acid present to consider the entire package a complete source of protein.
One of the biggest questions people have regarding protein intake is the amount they should be consuming on a daily basis. This can easily be calculated using the following formula:
Weight (kg) x 0.8 g/kg/day = Average Daily Protein Need
Pregnant and breastfeeding women require more protein to support the growth and development of their child and maintain their own health. The following formula can be used to calculate the protein needs of pregnant and breastfeeding women:
Pregnant women need: 1.1 g/kg/day
Women who are breastfeeding need: 1.3 g/kg/day
It has been found that our bodies can only process a certain amount of protein at a time, about 30 grams. So if you are eating the bulk of your protein at dinner, your body is only able to use 30 grams of that protein. The rest is either stored as fat or is burned off. For this reason, it is important to split up your protein intake throughout the day and consume amounts at breakfast, lunch, dinner.
For a list of protein-packed meals, visit:
https://www.chicken.ca/chicken-school/v/the-power-of-protein